EDMONTON — The Edmonton Oilers’ medical room is starting to look like a bakery. Everybody take a number.
Centre Colin Fraser, who played on the No. 2 line against Phoenix Thursday because of the run of injuries, is the latest of the walking (or hobbling) wounded. He hurt his foot against the Coyotes and he’s a scratch for Saturday night’s home game against the Colorado Avalanche in the taffy pull for 30th spot in the NHL race for No. 1 pick in the draft lottery.
Nobody’s quite sure how or when it happened but his injury has forced coach Tom Renney to get out his blender, once again, to come up with line combinations.
Liam Reddox could move into the middle on the second line with Swedes Magnus Paajarvi and Linus Omark now, with Ryan O’Marra at centre on an entire AHL farm line of Alexandre Giroux and Finn Teemu Hartikainen. Chris Vande Velde will centre a fourth unit with Steve MacIntyre and Jason Strudwick, who has played defence all season but has some experience on the wing.
With the Oilers heading on the road Monday to Nashville and St. Louis, there is a good chance they will again call up a forward from Oklahoma City. Fraser, who has played on the fourth line most of the year but also been a healthy scratch seven times since Feb. 5, is listed as day-to-day but as Renney said Saturday “his foot is very sore.�
The one player the Oilers haven’t taken a look at on the farm squad is forward Colin McDonald, who had three goals against Rockford (the Hawks farm team) Friday night in a 5-1 win. He has 31 goals, third most in the NHL. McDonald was only signed to an AHL contract last summer, however, and would have to sign an NHL pact to come up. “I think they are working on that,’ said Renney.
Theo Peckham, who has been out since Feb. 27 with a concussion after a fight with Boston’s Nathan Horton, will be back on the blue-line which will give the Oilers a full complement of 20 players.
Ales Hemsky (shoulder), Taylor Hall (sprained ankle), Sam Gagner (severed tendon in his hand), Shawn Horcoff (broken foot), Gilbert Brule (concussion), J.F. Jacques (foot) and Fraser are out up front. That’s theoretically seven of their top 12 forwards although Brule has been in and out of the lineup with sickness this season. He got his concussion hitting helmets with Pittsburgh’s Kris Letand after a charging penalty.
Devan Dubnyk will start in goal. He’s beaten the Avalanche 5-1, 5-1 the last two meetings.
jmatheson@edmontonjournal.com